Power Sale Looms Closer

Newcastle Herald

Friday August 22, 2008

LEADER

Power sale looms closer

THINGS are looking up for the NSW Premier, Morris Iemma.

Although polling reportedly suggests that Mr Iemma's Government would be swept from office with the loss of 21 seats if an election was held today, another poll this week found that the Premier's personal disapproval rating had edged down from 63 per cent to 60 per cent.

Mr Iemma would have been even happier yesterday when the state Auditor-General, Peter Achterstraat, reported that he could find "no major issue" with the Government's plan to privatise the state's power industry.

The report had been commissioned after the Opposition Leader, Mr O'Farrell, made a favourable verdict by the Auditor-General a condition of Coalition support for the sale.

Mr Iemma has been forced to seek the support of the Coalition to get his power sale legislation passed because his own party is having trouble coming to grips with the idea.

Now Mr O'Farrell will have to decide whether the report constitutes the "stunning endorsement" of the privatisation policy that Mr Iemma is claiming.

For his part, Mr O'Farrell is under great pressure from business and industry groups that are extremely keen to see the industry pass to private hands.

The only thing that may give him pause is the thought that the privatisation is likely to deliver a massive financial windfall to Labor, swelling its coffers by up to $10 billion well in time for the 2011 state election. Still, Mr O'Farrell may feel that the Iemma Government's public esteem is beyond recovery and, if that's the case, an incoming Coalition government would enjoy the financial fruits of Labor's hard-bought privatisation victory.

Mr Iemma is said to be anxious to recall Parliament early in order to speed the sale. If things go according to Labor's plan, retailer EnergyAustralia could be sold by the end of the year. A public float of shares in Eraring Energy and Integral Energy has been suggested, with other retail assets to be sold and generators leased to private operators.

With the union movement and much of the Labor organisation still bitterly opposed to the sell-off, the Auditor-General's "green light" sets the scene for an interesting parliamentary session.

Fishing for answers

THIS week's fish kill in the Myall Lakes is troubling. State and local authorities go to considerable lengths to protect water quality in the marine park and the idea that some infection or poison may have bypassed the safeguards should set alarm bells ringing.

Possible causes of fish kills include lack of oxygen in the water, a change in salinity levels and run-off or leachate from acid sulphate soils. Sometimes these are caused by human activity, but often they result from natural processes.

To preserve the integrity of the marine park not to mention the livelihood of fishermen in the area it should be a priority of investigators to determine the cause of the kill and eliminate the possibility of human factors.

© 2008 Newcastle Herald

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